Recap with Coach Frady
NCAA Atlanta Regional Coverage: Photo Galleries, Audio, News Coverage
CAA Championship Coverage: Photo Galleries, Audio, News Coverage
The Georgia State baseball team set a new standard for excellence this season, earning the team's first CAA Championship and advancing to the NCAA Regionals for the first time in school history. Along with that, the team saw several records ? both team and individual? eclipsed during the 2009 campaign.
After a very successful regular season, the Panthers swept through the CAA Championship in four games, tying the school record for consecutive wins with eight. Timely hitting and clutch performances on the mound became the norm, sending the Panthers to the NCAA Regionals for the first time.
State didn't have to travel far, playing in the Atlanta Regional at Georgia Tech. Before a packed house on Friday night, the Panthers gave the Yellow Jackets all they could handle and led midway through the game. After falling 9-3 to their cross-town rivals, State held Elon, one of the most potent offenses in the country to just four runs in the second game of the regional, but fell 4-3 to end of the most remarkable seasons in school history.
The list of records shattered started right as the top as the team won 39 games, eclipsing the mark of 33 set just a year ago. Under head coach Greg Frady, the Panthers have had two of their three 30-plus win seasons. State also shattered the winning percentage mark by 50 points, setting a new record of .639.
The 61 games played by the team established a new high in Georgia State history. The successful season saw the team break the school records for runs, hits, at bats, RBIs, innings pitched, saves, strikeouts and putouts.
Georgia State also set new records for at bats, innings pitched and putouts in a game, all set during the 15-inning affair at William & Mary.
Prior to the start of the season, seniors Robinson Polanco and Derek Simmons, as well as junior Bradley Logan were named to the CAA Coaches Preseason Team. Senior Matt Van Horn also earned honorable mention honors. It was the start of a most preseason recognition that the team had ever received as Rivals, SEBaseball and Baseball America all had the Panthers predicted to do well and named players to their preseason teams.
Leading the honors was Bradley Logan, who was also named to the Brooks Wallace National Player of the Year Watch List, after setting a new benchmark for hits in a season during his sophomore year. Senior Marc Mimeault was also named to the Coleman Company ? Johnny Bench Watch List for the second year in a row and would put together an all-american type season.
Individually, Matt Van Horn set a new single season games played mark with 60, while sophomore Aidan Francis established a new winning percentage mark of .833, going 5-1 on the mound for the Panthers.
Senior Chase Childers also eclipsed the career walks record and finished with 120, while Marc Mimeault finished his two years at State with a .364 batting average, the highest career batting average in school history.
The Panthers battled the weather early in the season, including a snow-out just two weeks in. State opened the season with a 6-5 come-from-behind win over Cleveland State as the Georgia State community saw the emergence of Aidan Francis. With the Panthers trailing, Francis threw 3.1 innings of no-hit relief as the Panthers came back for the win. State took three-of-four from the Vikings, including a 10-0 shutout in game three of the series.
Junior Ryan Moore made his debut against the Vikings and threw six innings of one-hit ball to earn CAA Pitcher of the Week honors on February 24th.
The Panthers followed the opening home stand with a trip to Mercer for their first road contest of the season. Sophomore Jonathan Kolowich, who missed the opening weekend of the season with the flu, sparked the Panther offense with a pinch-hit solo home run in the sixth inning and a two-RBI single in the seventh, leading State to a 9-5 win over their in-state rival.
State came home the following weekend only to dodge rain and snow, managing to sweep a pair of games from Eastern Michigan before Sunday's series finale had to be cancelled.
Led by senior Will Palmer, the Panthers hit the road to face their first ranked opponent of the year. The no. 18 South Carolina Gamecocks scored just two runs against the Panthers, but held State scoreless to win 2-0. The lone USC runs game on a first inning two-run home run.
The Panthers returned to the road for their second longest road-trip of the season and split four games at the Bethune-Cookman University Invitational. State wouldn't learn until after the season that three of those games would be against fellow NCAA Regional foes. State earned two-run victories over Michigan State and the host Wildcats, while dropping a pair to Xavier.
After a scoring slump in Daytona Beach, the bats came alive for a school record tying 22 runs against Florida A&M in Tallahassee. The record had stood alone for almost 30 years, but every Panther starter reached base at least twice, batting around on two occasions, State tied the mark in just seven innings.
Georgia State reached the 10-win mark with a 10-5 win over Augusta State, the second quickest the Panthers had won ten games in school history.
After splitting a pair with UT-Martin in a Friday doubleheader, the Panthers watched as weather once again affected the team. The series finale was never played as rain pelted the Atlanta area on both Saturday and Sunday. Freshman Brandon Williams had a pair of three-hit games, leading him to earn CAA Rookie of the Week honors on March 16th.
The home-stand continued with a 14-10 win over Savannah State as the Panthers improved to 12-5. The following night, the largest crowd in Panthersville history watched as Georgia State hosted no. 3 Georgia, the first time the Bulldogs had traveled to Atlanta in five years. State played the Bulldogs close, before falling 11-6. The Panthers got a chance against another ranked in-state opponent just one week later.
First, the Panthers opened CAA play taking two-of-three from William & Mary. Game two of the series last over five hours and went 15 innings, before the Tribe was able to win the game 9-8. Not to be deterred, the Panthers put up nine runs in the first four innings of the series finale and came home with a 12-9 victory and the series.
Georgia State's road-trip continued, but only across town, as the Panthers faced no. 3 Georgia Tech, live on Fox Sports South. Senior John Locklear set the tone on the mound and with home runs by Derek Simmons, Bradley Logan and Marc Mimeault; the Panthers defeated the Yellow Jackets 10-1. It was the highest ranked opponent that Georgia State had ever defeated and set the tone for the rest of the season. It also improved the Panthers to 15-7, reaching the 15-win mark in just 22 games.
The Panthers returned home for a three-game, CAA home-series opener against no. 26 UNC Wilmington. Unfortunately, weather once again played a role and the two teams did not play a game. It would be another two months before State would get its first look at the Seahawks.
State was finally able to get back on the diamond in a make-up game at Kennesaw State, the first of three straight midweek games against in-state foes. The Panthers earned a 5-4 win over the Owls, before falling to Mercer 5-4. The Panthers closed out the set with a 14-7 make-up game win over Oglethorpe as State scored 10 runs in the first four innings.
After rain forced the postponement of game one at Delaware, the Panthers swept a Saturday doubleheader with the Blue Hens. In game one, Chase Childers belted a pair of home runs and drove in eight, tying the single game school record shared with three others. The team would score 30 runs in the doubleheader, but the pitching staffs would settle things in the series finale, as Delaware earned an 8-4 win. For his efforts, Childers earned CAA Player of the Week honors on April 6th.
State once again limited an SEC opponent's offense, holding Auburn to just six hits in a midweek match-up. Unfortunately, three hits were solo home runs as the Tigers kept the Panthers from win number 20, winning 4-2 at Auburn.
The Panthers would not have to wait long to eclipse the 20-win mark, scoring 34 runs in a doubleheader with Alabama State, reaching the 20-win mark in the fewest games in school history. Senior Michael McCree tied the single game hits record, going 5-for-6 with four runs scored and four RBIs from the lead-off spot in game one. Chase Childers followed in game two with one of his two four-hit games of the season, while senior Adam Knight allowed just two hits in five innings pitched.
State finally played its first home CAA series of the season, taking two-of-three from Old Dominion. The second game of the series will be one that Panther fans don't soon forget. Leading 9-8 heading to the top of the ninth, the Monarchs scored five runs off the Panther bullpen, including a grand slam by Josh Wright. As the Panthers had not given up all season, Carl Moniz led off the bottom of the ninth with a solo home run to cut the deficit to three. State quickly followed by loading the bases for Chase Childers, who belted a walk-off grand slam as the ballpark erupted. It would be just another sign of great things to come for State.
Childers entered the series with Old Dominion looking to break a pair of NCAA records. When the streak ended, the senior had gone 12-for-12 and reached base in 15 straight plate appearances, just missing out on each of the records.
Just has the Panthers had continued to play at a high-level all season; one bump in the road could have derailed the team. The key would be how quickly the team could rebound if a bump occurred. After losing a pair of midweek games to Samford and no. 10 Georgia Tech, the Panthers quickly rebounded, taking two-of-three from Northeastern to start an eight-game road trip. By taking the series finale, the Panthers reached the 25-win plateau in the fewest games in school history, improving to 25-14.
After splitting a series at Tennessee Tech, another future NCAA Regional participant, Georgia State concluded its road trip at James Madison. The Panthers did not match up well with the Dukes and were swept, but were still in the hunt for the CAA Championship.
The Panthers quickly responded after final exams to sweep VCU and put themselves in prime position to return to the CAA Championship. Aidan Francis made his first start on the mound and went 8.2 innings to earn the Friday night victory. For his work, Francis earned CAA Co-Pitcher and Rookie of the Week honors. When Robinson Polanco recorded the final out on Sunday, State had all-but clinched a spot in the championship with one week to play.
State followed with a 9-3 win over Samford in the Bulldogs return trip to Atlanta and started to use that momentum to build toward the postseason.
On senior weekend, Towson took the first two games of the final CAA series of the season, but Panthers rebounded on Sunday, including a five-run first inning, to clinch a spot in the championship with a 15-5 victory. Ryan Moore threw a complete game, his first of the season, while striking out five.
State tied the school record for wins after a midweek match-up with Florida A&M and established a new mark by sweeping Alabama State to end the regular season, sending the Panthers to Wilmington on a four-game winning streak.
It would not be until after the weekend was over that State would learn it was the number two seed in the championship. It was the best regular season finish for the Panthers in school history who had their conference bye week to end the year.
Before the start of the tournament, a record tying five Panthers earned All-CAA honors. Derek Simmons became the first player in Georgia State history to earn first team honors on two occasions. Marc Mimeault and Ryan Moore each earned second team honors, while Aidan Francis and Brandon Williams were each named to the third team. Francis also earned all-rookie honors. It marked the second year in a row that five members of the team were honored, but it would only be the start of a lot more hardware that would travel back to Atlanta.
State quickly provided the fans that made the trip to Wilmington with some excitement on day one. Trailing by one heading to the bottom of the eight, State tied the game at five. Freshman Justin Malone threw a scoreless ninth, providing the stage for Derek Simmons in the bottom half of the inning. Senior Michael McCree walked to lead-off the inning and then stole second base. Following an intentional walk to Nick Hogan, Simmons singled through the right-side, scoring McCree to give the Panthers a 6-5 walk-off victory and remain in the winner's bracket as a celebration erupted at home plate.
Will Palmer led the charge on day two, going into the eighth inning against host UNC Wilmington, before handing it over to Justin Malone, who had earned the win in game one. Malone threw 1.1 of hitless relief, while home runs by Chase Childers and Bradley Logan led the Panthers to an 8-5 win over the Seahawks. It was the second straight game Logan had hit a home run as Malone earned his first save of the championship.
Ryan Moore and Bradley Logan were the headlines of game three of the championship. After not facing the CAA regular season champions during the season, State blasted the top 30 ranked Patriots 9-3 to move into the championship game for the first time in school history. Moore pitched his second consecutive complete game, while Logan homered for the third game in a row. Marc Mimeault, Carl Moniz and Michael McCree also homered to rough up a squad who had the fewest loses in the country entering the day.
The victory set up a rematch with UNC Wilmington in the championship, with the Seahawks needing to win twice to take the title. Early on, the Seahawks were in control and it appeared as though they would force a final game. However, trailing 8-3 heading into the fifth, the Panthers had different ideas. Back-to-back four-run innings, including Brandon Williams second home run of the season, put the Panthers back ahead. Head Coach Greg Frady handed the ball over to Justin Malone to start the eighth, as he once again held the Seahawks hitless over the final two innings to earn the save and send the Panthers to a 12-10 victory and their first CAA Championship.
Bradley Logan homered for the fourth game in a row to earn CAA Most Outstanding Performer and All-Tournament Team honors. Marc Mimeault, Michael McCree, Ryan Moore and Justin Malone were also named to the team.
The team batted .392 with two outs during the championship, as clutch hitting and solid pitching earned the team a bid to the NCAA Regionals.
The Panthers returned home to a media blitz as fans on campus and around the world called to congratulate the champions. State learned its NCAA fate, a cross-town match-up with Georgia Tech, Elon and Southern Miss in the Atlanta Regional live on ESPN. A crazy week followed as everyone wanted to know how the Panthers had done it.
As support reached new levels and the Panthers became the nation's Cinderella team, there was still baseball to play.
Unfortunately, the Panthers would not be able to get to the 40-win plateau, as Georgia Tech and Elon bounced State from the regional.
Marc Mimeault was named to the Atlanta Regional All-Tournament Team after another stellar season by the senior.
A few days later, Justin Malone earned Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American honors to cap what had been a remarkable and record setting year for State.
The Panthers scored 485 runs, breaking the old record set in 1984 of 446 runs. The team also shattered the strikeouts record by more than 100, finishing the year with 474 strikeouts. Remarkably, the team also set a new saves record of 19, led by Malone's seven, breaking the record of 12 set in 2005. The team also broke the RBIs record by 40 and hits record by 33.
Georgia State wrapped up the 2009 campaign with a 39-22 overall mark and a 12-9 record in the Colonial Athletic Association. State saw 11 seniors finish their careers as some of the most decorated baseball student-athletes the university has ever seen.
The team was obviously disappointed that the season had come to an end the way it did, but the foundation had been laid for the next generation of Panthers to start a tradition that will one day lead Georgia State to Omaha and the College World Series.
